This is Halloween, Everybody Scream!
by CadeXHybrid
Summary: An all night, Halloween costume party was going smoothly until one uninvited guest casts a magic spell that turns every teenager at the party into their Halloween costumes. Not only does Sora have to chase down his classmates-turned creatures of the night all over Destiny Island, he must deal with his own wicked transformation...which isn't too bad, considering he's a vampire.
1. Party Like a Monster

This doesn't take place in any specific part of the Kingdom Hearts' timeline.

**Disclaimer:** Honestly. On a site called FanFiction dot net, did you really have the slightest hunch that I might own anything related to Kingdom Hearts? Also, in no way do I condone underage drinking. (Unless the cool kids are doing it.)

On to the horror show…

**Chapter 1: Party Like a Monster**

Destiny Islands, Halloween Night…

It's a pain growing up sometimes. Certain things need to be let go of. When he was younger, Sora freely enjoyed trick-or-treating with friends and family every Halloween. However, now that he was a growing teenager, that childish tradition just wasn't socially acceptable anymore. This year, it was time to say goodbye to walking door-to-door with a decorated prize bag in hand. Of course, being a teenager didn't necessarily mean the fun was over and done with. In lieu of trick-or-treating, Sora was going to be attending his first all-night Halloween party. (No chaperones!)

And much to Sora's delight, elaborate and scary costumes were totally encouraged. Heck, it was a requirement.

Stepping out onto the front porch of his house and sporting his reliable vampire costume from Halloween Town (courtesy of Donald's magic), Sora took a deep breath of the night air and joined his four friends across the street in their short walk to Selphie's house.

* * *

**-X-**

"I already know she's got 'drink' at the party," Riku responded. For the costume party, he wore black boots, a pair of torn jeans, a black vest, some silver fuzz glued to his jawline, and some plastic fangs to help fit the role of a werewolf. Removing the imitation fangs from his mouth so he could speak more clearly, Riku added, "But the real question is how much?"

"As long as there's enough 'drink' for everybody, who really gives a hoot?" Tidus asked with a shrug. He was wearing his blue and yellow blitzball uniform, but the main theme came from how he'd decorated it with blood stains to make him appear undead, or zombified. Tidus had even gone the extra mile of detailing a portion of his cheek to make it appear as though his skin was decaying. "I think two or three cups should get me through the night."

Looking over at Riku and Tidus, Sora inquired, "Wait, you guys are planning on drinking? For real?"

Shooting his friend a deadpan expression, Riku retorted, "Yeah, it's called a party. Didn't anyone tell you 'drinking' and 'partying' are actually synonyms?"

Tidus added, "And it's not like we have to drive home or anything. It's an all-night party, so why not have a little fun?"

Rubbing his chin in deep thought, Sora only hummed lowly, "Hmm…"

Sora's other two friends walking with him, longtime comrades Donald and Goofy, were both evidently against underage drinking. Walking to the right of Sora and wearing his trusty mummified costume, Donald hollered, "Absolutely not, Sora! It's against the law!"

Goofy, wearing his more than realistic Frankenstein costume, cautiously agreed with an index finger hovering slightly over his chin, "Yeah, it's also dangerous, too. Who knows what kinda scary places alcohol can lead ya!"

Picking up his pace all of a sudden, Sora replied with a smile, "Ah, relax. I probably won't even like the taste of it, anyway."

Delivering a light, enthusiastic punch to the side of Sora's shoulder, Tidus cheered, "All right, Sora! We're lettin' loose, tonight!"

Smirking, Riku casually warned, "Don't overdo it. Everyone we know from school is gonna be there."

"Except Wakka," Tidus clarified. "It's a shame he's too sick with the flu to make it."

* * *

**-X-**

"Cool costumes, guys!" Selphie complimented Sora, Riku, Tidus, Donald, and Goofy. She had to yell over the loud music and casual chatter of the teenaged visitors partying within her home.

Selphie had dressed up as a witch of some sort. In addition to a large, pointy hat, she wore an extra small miniskirt along with a black blouse.

The house's interior was packed with students of all ages from Destiny High, dancing to the stereos' loud tunes and conversing with each other in the dimly lit living room. The theme of Halloween was proficiently present judging by how the walls were decorated with simulated spider webs, fake skeletons, and plastic jack-o-lanterns. Evidently, the partying teenagers were down with the Halloween costumes; boys were dressed up in interesting, creative, and even some scary outfits while girls merely vied to wear the skimpiest costumes possible.

"So where's Wakka?" Selphie asked, noticing he was nowhere to be found.

"He's still sick," Tidus reported over the loud festivities.

Shaking her head, Selphie shrugged and said, "Well, that bites. Anyway, enjoy yourselves!"

* * *

**-X-**

As soon as Donald and Goofy turned their backs, Sora hit the nearest keg. He smoothly swiped a red plastic cup, grasped the nozzle, and filled that bad boy up to the brim. Sniffing the cup's contents first, Sora shrugged and took one legendary gulp, marking his first time to ever taste the likes of beer. And geez, did it leave a foul taste on his tongue. He was still going to down the whole thing, regardless of bitter taste.

Amid the festive chaos, Donald and Goofy more than likely witnessed him participate in the consumption of alcohol along with Riku, Tidus, and everyone else at the party. Noticing that Donald had been shaking his head in deep derision since they'd entered the party, Goofy turned and said, "Shucks, Donald. Just let the kids be kids for one night!"

Relenting a bit, Donald nodded with a smile and got more into things as the night went on.

* * *

**-X-**

Selphie's stereo systems were definitely bumping some beats worth moving to. As inebriation began to take effect, more and more teenagers found themselves dancing in the decorated, dimly-lit living room. To his intoxicated delight, Sora and company jammed out to loud pop music, hip-hop songs, some techno, and even that insane Gangnam Style song. And yes, each teen, including Sora, knew the specific dance for that last item.

**-X-**

It was 11:45. He'd literally been dancing for an hour and a half, but it was all such a dim, colorful blur to him. And that living room was still bumping. Sora definitely needed to go cool off.

With his head still spinning, Sora had retreated up the wooden stairs, walking past a closed bedroom door where questionable noises emitted until he reached the door to Selphie's upstairs balcony. Opening it and taking a step outside, Sora leaned forth on the wooden banister and gazed out at the dark, surrounding neighborhood, enjoying the night's cool breeze. The houses were of different designs and sizes, but they'd all been given identical paintjobs: brown and beige.

In the night's veil, Sora could make out Kairi's house in the distance.

"Hey. Party's inside, genius."

Doing the world's slowest one-eighty, Sora leaned his back against the banister and smiled at the evil, redheaded fairy standing in the doorway. She was dressed in what appeared to be a bat-themed, red and black dress that cut low from the neck and stopped high above her thighs. In addition to fuzzy black boots, Kairi also donned two small batwings, similar in size and shape to Sora's own batwings, affixed to the back of her miniscule dress. Currently, she was beaming at the vampire-boy.

Smiling back at her with a gleam in his eyes, Sora greeted wholeheartedly, "Hi there…whatever you're supposed to be."

"Oh, so you're drunk?" Kairi deduced with a perceptive smirk, strolling over to Sora on the balcony.

Lying pitifully, Sora attempted, "What? No way—I haven't even—_hic_—I didn't even know there was alcohol!"

Joining Sora on the banister, Kairi laughed at her unmistakably inebriated friend and murmured, "That right?"

"Yeah, really. All I had was some soda-pop."

"That's funny. All the soda was spiked."

"Oh…I mean—I just ate some Jell-O from the fridge."

"Those were Jell-O shots, Sora."

"…I give up. You got me. I'm drunk."

Cupping her hands around her mouth, Kairi giggled and admitted, "That's okay…'cuz I'm tipsy, too."

"Perfect! Let's go dance!" Sora proposed, taking her hand and leading her toward the doorway.

"Or…" Effectively halting his efforts, Kairi stepped in front of Sora, trapping his body between her frame and the balcony's wooden railing. Tilting her head slightly, she offered affectionately, "We could just stay up—"

A series of screams echoed from the living room downstairs.

"Did you hear that?" Sora asked curiously.

The screams continued as a bright green light bounced off the walls within Selphie's home, illuminating her windows before going dark again. Finally, the screaming came to an end.

"What _was_ that…?" Kairi muttered, clutching Sora's arm.

Sobering up relatively quickly, Sora led the way back inside the house. With Kairi practically hanging from his right arm, Sora treaded slowly down the dark upstairs hallway, headed for the top of the stairwell located on the other side. Everyone downstairs had fallen unrealistically quiet; even the music from Selphie's stereos had been switched off.

The door adjacent to Sora and Kairi exploded open, certainly startling the two intoxicated teens and revealing…two more intoxicated teens. One of them, a boy dressed as a punk rock star with his shirt halfway off, asked, "What the heck's happening down there?"

The other, a girl dressed as a cheerleader with her hair in total disarray, nervously inquired, "Where did all those lights—?"

"Quiet!" Sora hissed, once again taking the lead.

Reaching the top of the stairwell, Sora cautiously led Kairi and their two associates down to the first floor of Selphie's house. There in the dim living room, all of the costumed party guests were motionlessly passed out and scattered about the floor.

"What the…?" Kairi gasped.

Out the corner of his eye, Sora saw something dark and shady move rapidly toward the front door—it was opened. The moment that Sora turned his head to investigate, the door had been slammed shut without a trace of the mysterious figure. Whatever it was, it got away.

"Who…or what was that?" the boy dressed as a rock star asked.

The cheerleader girl, observing everyone's motionless bodies from the stairs, tensely asked, "Is this some kind of prank?"

Meanwhile, Sora had entered the living room and bolted straight to Riku's aide, Kairi soon following after. Riku had passed out face-down on the tile floor; Sora turned him over and attempted to wake up his wolfman-themed friend. However, after having turned the comatose Riku face-up, Sora jumped slightly in reaction to Riku's new facial features. Not only were the fangs in Riku's mouth very real and prominent, but also the silver hair lining his jawline from ear to ear represented what looked like an authentic mane. Speaking of silver hair, Riku's arms, legs, and chest had definitely sprouted an unprecedented amount of gray fuzz.

"What's wrong with him?" Kairi exclaimed, unsure if she was more disturbed by the fact that he was unconscious or the total metamorphosis of Riku's features.

Shaking him and slapping his best friend's furry face, Sora yelled, "Riku! Wake up!"

"That's it. I'm calling the police," said the girl dressed as a cheerleader, pulling out her cell phone.

"Uh…" Sora glanced at the giant keg in the corner of the room. _"Maaaybe_ that's not such a great idea…"

"Well, we have to do something!" the girl shouted, entering a state of panic.

Raising his hands defensively, Sora pled, "Hold on! Let's just try to wake everyone—"

"_Oooooh—my head!"_

Turning and fastening their gazes on the silver-headed boy, Sora and Kairi faced Riku with utterly flummoxed expressions.

"Riku…?" Kairi uttered.

Shooting up to a sitting position, Riku massaged his forehead repeatedly with clawed fingers and a terribly pained expression on his face. Exposing his fangs in palpable anguish, Riku wailed, "What's…wrong with me?! _Aaagh!"_

Just then, others began to awaken from their coma as well. Goofy, acting just like his Frankenstein costume suggested, sat up and hollered in a troglodytic tone, "Goofy head hurt! This why Goofy no party on weekends!"

Donald, on the other hand, was struggling to stand up seeing as how his mummified body was falling apart at the seams. Desperately trying to reattach his legs, Donald asked in a fearful tone, "This sorta stuff happens all the time at parties, right?" His right arm snapped off.

"Oh no…" Sora lamented, looking around at the rest of his friends and classmates as they each reawakened. "Kairi, are you seeing this?"

"Yeah…everyone's turning into their Halloween costume," Kairi responded breathlessly, eyes wide and shifty.

The girl dressed as a cheerleader, who was previously going to call the police, was now staring at every transformed individual around her, watching a kid who'd arrived at the party outfitted as a skeleton casually remove his bony skull from his top vertebra and then proceed to screw it back on. The girl fainted.

"This is so wicked!" yelled a sophomore boy dressed in all black. Like lightning, he did a backflip and nimbly landed on top of Selphie's stereo. "I'm a flippin' ninja, baby!"

One girl who'd come to the party dressed as a scantily clad feline had now taken on the appearance of a crossbreed between a human girl and an anthropomorphic cat, causally licking her furry wrist and hissing at anyone nearby.

Another one of Sora's classmates, who was already very tall to begin with, had been magically morphed into a walking, talking tree with bright green leaves sprouting from his head. His once painted-gray arms had now become lengthy, coarse tree branches extending all the way down to his roots-for-feet.

One kid, who'd come to the party dressed as a giant milk carton, was currently regretting even getting out of bed that morning.

However, giant milk cartons, cat-girls, and trees were the least of Sora's troubles. Arguably the most problematic of the presently awakening teenagers were the ones who dressed as something genuinely scary, like Riku for instance. Sora looked on in bafflement at the snarling werewolf, insane clown holding a cleaver, sea monster, executor with a black mask, serial killer wearing a hockey mask, murderous nurse twirling a scalpel, and smirking devil in a red cape.

Selphie, a witch in all of her glory, had inexplicably located a broomstick, holding it high over her head as she shrieked, "See you suckers later! _Aheheheheh!"_

Taking a ride upon her broomstick, she adeptly used a formidable amount of witchcraft to blow the front door off its hinges with a magic shockwave and soar out into the night sky.

"Stop it, Selphie!" Kairi shouted after her departing witch-friend.

"We need to go after her!" Sora declared.

Suddenly, another kid who had incidentally dressed as a Viking for the party raised his very-authentic battle axe and charged out the front door, screaming in determination, _"The witch's head shall be mine!"_

Riku, a transformed wolfman, caught sight of the cat-girl from across the room, growling under his breath before roaring and sprinting after the poor girl. Frightened, the cat girl led a quick chase around the crowded living room before dipping outside through the front door, with Riku in hot pursuit.

More and more of Selphie's transformed party guests began flooding outside of the house, running wild in the dark neighborhood. In a pitiful effort to stop the deranged students-turned-creatures-of-the-night, Sora yelled, "Guys, stay inside! Please!"

Even Donald and Goofy managed to escape the confines of Selphie's home, leaving with the crowd of monsters and other eerie things. The only people left in the living room were Sora, Kairi, the passed-out cheerleader girl, and the rock star boy attempting to wake her up.

Sora's head began spinning again – but not because of the alcohol. Clutching his temples, Sora desperately tried to make sense of what had just transpired. He quietly relayed, "Okay…so we heard weird noises. Then we came downstairs. Everyone was passed out. Then they woke up – and now everybody's a monster!"

"Riku's a werewolf…and Selphie's a witch," Kairi added, also in a listless stupor. "And Donald and Goofy are…_Sora, behind you!"_

"Huh?" Sora followed Kairi's quick warning and whirled around instantly, facing a zombified blitzball player coming straight for him. "Oh—"

Zombie Tidus had seemingly crept out of nowhere, clutching Sora's shoulders and attempting to gnaw into the vampire-boy's neck. Growling and screaming at him, Tidus aggressively inched closer toward Sora with his snarling, decaying face. Fighting off the undead athlete's advances with all his strength, Sora finally managed to detach Tidus' hands from his shoulders, throwing the ravenous zombie into a nearby bookcase.

"He…he almost bit me!" Sora admitted, breathing intensely.

"Are you okay?" Kairi asked, inspecting Sora for wounds.

Casually brushing off his shoulder, Sora smiled and said, "Yeah, I'm fine. Tidus, on the other hand…"

Zombie Tidus, twitching and convulsing as he lay on the floor, moaned lethargically, "Uhhhhn…brains…and other assorted organs…ohhhhhh…"

Sora went on, "Well…I think I just prevented a zombie outbreak, which is always a good thing. I say we tie him up and leave him here on the couch. Then, you and I can go get everyone else back under control and hopefully get to the bottom of this mess. Ready, Kairi?"

"Yeah. Let's take care of Tidus," Kairi responded with a nod, eyes locked on the groaning zombie.

After solving their undead problem with Selphie's garden hose, Sora and Kairi prepared to embark on their journey outside. They instructed the visibly frightened rock star boy to stay behind in Selphie's house and keep an eye on Tidus. He reluctantly obeyed.

* * *

**-X-**

Running outside in the dark night, Sora and Kairi felt the urgency at hand. Monsters and serial killers were on the loose, running amok in the villages of Destiny Islands. Property could be damaged, someone could get seriously hurt, or worse—their parents might find out they'd been drinking.

"Should we go after the most dangerous people first?" Kairi asked while jogging with Sora.

"Yeah, and Riku was one of them," Sora replied. "There was also that guy dressed as a clown, and I think I remember a sea monster…"

"Don't forget Selphie," Kairi added. "She's a witch."

Sprinting into a nearby cul-de-sac of their neighborhood, Sora and Kairi immediately spotted Donald and Goofy blundering around in the middle of the dirt road. Franken-Goofy looked as if he were attempting to repair Donald's broken, decayed body parts, but his handyman skills needed serious work.

Donald complained, "No, you dunce! My legs don't go there!"

"Oopsie," Goofy grumbled, mistakenly placing Donald's legs in his arm-sockets.

Arriving in front of them, Sora exclaimed happily, "Guys! You had me worried—real worried. Let's get you back at Selphie's house, and then we'll find out what happened to you."

"You don't understand," Donald panicked, eyes darting between Sora and Kairi like a mental patient. "Those lights—they changed us! They changed all of us!"

Bewildered, Sora asked, "Lights? What lights?"

"You mean the green lights?" Kairi pried, bursting for an answer to the madness.

Just then, Goofy pointed over Sora's shoulder and alerted, "There! Man who make green lights!"

Before Sora or Kairi even got a chance to fully rotate their head, a powerful gust of wind caught all four of them from behind. Sora, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy tumbled like four stones across the dirt road, laid out in a heap amongst each other.

The first to get back up to his feet, Sora eyed their enshrouded attacker wearily, hardly getting a good look at him under the moonlight. However, one certain aspect of the assailant's black clothing triggered something in Sora's mind. It was one of those black cloaks Sora had grown accustomed to seeing on bad guys in the past; it was heavily used by Organization XIII.

The dark, hooded figure glided closer into Sora's view; whoever it was appeared to be balancing a rather sizable book his right hand, holding it open to a random page. Sora could almost spot straight, metallic blue hair pouring from the hood's low veil.

Donald, Goofy, and Kairi also got a good look at their new adversary, standing beside Sora. Tension brewing within him, Sora accused, "So you're the one behind this!"

"If you're referring to your transformed friends, then yes," the mystery man replied. "However, I had nothing to do with all of those naughty boys and girls participating in underage drinking."

Since Donald's arms and legs were misplaced in the wrong sockets, the duck mage crossed his legs in a pouty manner and gave Sora a disappointed look. As a response, Sora decided to shoulder the blame.

"Don't just look at me – she did it, too!" Sora snitched, pointing a thumb at Kairi. She merely rolled her eyes.

The hooded man interjected, "How would you fools like to join the rest of your friends?"

Holding out his hand, Sora countered, "How would you like to feel the Keyblade?"

In a brief flash of light, Sora's Kingdom Key materialized in his right hand, prepped for battle. Turning around, Sora rallied on, "C'mon, Donald! Let's get him, Goofy!"

Unfortunately, Donald was widely incapable of putting up a decent fight thanks to the odd placement of his arms. Adding insult to injury, Goofy picked up Donald by his tail feathers, mistaking the mummified duck for his shield. Cue the duck's fiery glare.

Realizing his comrades were no use to him in their current state, Sora sheepishly revised, "Okay…just protect Kairi, then. I'll handle this!"

The hooded man studied his opponents for a moment. Then, he remarked aloud, "It seems the two of you somehow evaded my hex. Fear not, your transformations are imminent."

"Wanna bet?" Sora quipped before hurling out his Keyblade in a Strike Raid.

Swaying his body leftward of the spinning Kingdom Key, the hooded man held out his free hand and instantly launched a stream of thousands of loose pages from his sleeve. Re-summoning his Kingdom Key, Sora did his best to protect himself against the torrent of loose paper racing in his direction. Inevitably suffering a plethora of paper cuts along his legs, arms, and hands, Sora was knocked backward a few feet.

Before Sora even had the chance to stand up again, more of the loose pages began collecting over his entire body, strictly prohibiting movement. Rapidly being buried underneath the paper stream, he felt as if each page weighed a ton of bricks by the way they constrained him to the cold pavement. After the last piece of paper affixed itself to Sora's body, all but his head was entombed under the paper prison.

Sora strained to lift his arms and legs, failing to even move the Keyblade. Grimacing from the discomfort, Sora shouted, "Let me out!"

The hooded man cackled and retorted, "I'd rather let out that monster you're pretending to be."

"Hey, you!"

The hooded man had turned in the direction of Kairi's voice; Donald, Goofy, and Kairi had finally gathered themselves together, looking ready to defend Sora with their lives.

Just then, Donald flicked his webbed foot and cried, _"Thunder!"_

It was clearly an honest attempt to prevent the hooded man from causing Sora any more harm, but alas, Donald was not quite used to practicing magic spells with his feet. A small lightning bolt extended from the dark sky, completely missing Donald's intended target and striking Franken-Goofy's head instead. In a slow-motion fall, Goofy was out cold.

Sheepishly looking down at his fallen comrade, the mummified duck uttered, "Er…sorry."

Ignoring their now decreased odds of rescuing Sora or even challenging the mysterious man, Kairi boldly commanded, "You let Sora go and change all our friends back to normal!"

"Don't worry," the hooded man responded. "I'll let him go eventually, but I'm afraid your other wish will go unfulfilled. Can't you see your other friends are having fun, running amok as ghoulish entities? Why would you want to put an end to such mischievous joy?"

"Maybe because a lot of people are going to get hurt if we don't do something to stop them?" Kairi answered.

Sora added from the ground, "Plus…we could get into _a lot_ of trouble with the law."

Shaking his head, the hooded man laughed and put in his two cents, "I get it. The two of you are simply envious. Why should all your friends enjoy their transformations while you two are still sporting those cheap costumes you probably shoplifted from the mall?"

"That's not it at all," Sora annulled. "We seriously wanna avoid criminal records at all costs—"

"_Monstrazo masho!" _

It didn't take long for Sora to understand that the hooded man's interruption was actually a strange incantation, but it was when a translucent, green orb ascended from his handheld book that Sora realized what this magic spell was going to be used for. Completely paralyzed, the restrained boy wasn't even able to shut his eyes after taking one glance at the green orb.

Just as soon as the orb had appeared, it silently exploded, resulting in a fantastic light show of green hues. Sora gasped at how the entire cul-de-sac had lit up like daytime for a split moment. In his peripheral vision, he could barely make out the shapes of Kairi, Donald, and Goofy all staring up at the display of green lights. In that split moment, he began to ponder what was to become of the already-hexed Donald and Goofy, but more importantly, what would happen to him and Kairi.

That small amount of thinking caused Sora to black out, punctuated by a shrill scream from the princess.


	2. Enter the Night

_Appreciating the praise and support, as always!_

_Hopefully, we all know what a succubus is (and does, wink-wink). If ya don't, Morrigan Aensland from Darkstalkers is a pretty neat example._

_Back to the horror show…_

**Chapter 2: Enter the Night**

It couldn't have been more than ten or twenty minutes since Sora blacked out. He'd been lying on the cold street for an indeterminate amount of time, but it was still dark out. Upon regaining consciousness, the first thing Sora noticed was that his body was no longer being restrained by the assailant's magic paper. Neither the hooded man nor his arsenal of loose pages resided in view. He was alone in the cul-de-sac, the light of the lone lamppost barely illuminating the environment. The second thing he noticed was…

"My head hurts…ugh," Sora grumbled, slowly rising like a reanimating corpse. Sitting down with his legs sprawled out in front of him, Sora grasped the mini-pumpkin mask strapped to the corner of his forehead and briskly ripped it off. Rubbing both buggy-blue eyes with a heavy sigh, Sora muttered in anguish, "Why does it feel like my brain got smashed by a lead brick?" Looking around, Sora chuckled to himself and said aside, "Good thing Riku wasn't around to hear that…"

Eyes widening, Sora exclaimed, "That's right – I need to find Riku!" Sora stood up too quickly, a feeling of lightheadedness instantly taking effect. Following that disorienting sensation, Sora's stomach roared something fierce. "Gotta find and save everyone else…and then maybe grab a bite."

Figuring that his wooziness would vanish if he started moving, Sora took off running in the direction of some eerie noises. The upside to tracking down high school students-turned monsters was that they didn't keep a low profile. Sora imagined they were having the time of their lives with their newly acquired abilities, and he almost wished he didn't have to be the one to spoil the fun. However, he still recognized the immediate threat they posed to the community. That, and everyone could seriously get in a lot of trouble for drinking.

Sora suddenly halted in his run. Looking down at his gloved hands, Sora curiously asked, "Wait a sec…shouldn't I be transformed, too? I know I looked right into that green light." Gripping his temples, he added, "Besides this splitting headache, I don't feel any different from before. Maybe I got lucky?"

Just then, a woman's shrill scream resonated from the adjacent street. Running with a sense of duty, Sora vaulted over a parked car and leapt a wooden fence in a single bound. Landing on the other side, Sora exploded in a jaguar-sprint down the dirt path, just now noticing his superhuman agility.

"Whoa…" Sora gasped while sprinting. "Have I always been this fast?"

Just as Sora was passing a tree, his instincts told him to dive forward…lest he receive the wrath of a giant axe head-on. Shuffling back to his feet, Sora whirled around to face his attacker; the kid who'd come dressed as a Viking was camped out behind the tree, well-hidden enough for a sneak attack.

"Apologies, lad," said the Viking, slinging the authentic battle-axe over his shoulder. Beaming behind his authentic beard, he explained in a who-knows-what type of European accent, "You looked a bit like one of them freaks skulking about the night. Yep, there sure are a lot of wackos roaming around."

"You don't say?" Sora replied with a peeved undertone.

Oblivious, the Viking inquired, "Have ya seen the wicked witch Selphie, by any chance? My blade thirsts for her blood!"

Shaking his head, which didn't throb as much as before, Sora replied, "No I haven't seen her. Say, you haven't hurt anyone with that axe yet, have you?"

"No, hence why it's past due a bloodbath. My blade shall cut down the witch and all who stand in my way!"

Tapping a finger to his chin, Sora remarked, "You know, it kinda sounds like you have an unresolved issue with Selphie. It's always better to talk those issues out."

Sora remembered this kid from his homeroom class; he could recall him repeatedly trying to hit on Selphie, but the girl seldom ever hit back. This could be faulted on the kid having no game whatsoever, so those attempts to charm Selphie usually concluded with crashing and burning. Sora was witness to those fails on multiple occasions, and he honestly didn't ever have the heart to tell the kid something everyone in the classroom knew – it was never going to happen between them.

Using this prior knowledge, Sora stated like a faux-therapist, "I don't think it's your blade that's mad at the witch. I think it's you, buddy."

Eyes darting around, the Viking nervously adjusted his helmet. "Uhh…what'd give you that idea?"

"No reason. Except maybe you're still not over those times she rejected you," Sora inferred, pretty much hitting a nerve.

"Whoever told ya that is lying!" The Viking immediately declared, tightening his grip on the battle-axe.

"Barry," Sora said, using the student's first name, "I'm in your homeroom class. I've seen you get rejected every day since school started. Plus, everyone saw you get rejected again at the party. It's okay, man, it happens. But the only reason it keeps happening to you is because you keep trying to impress the same girl. Look, let's just go back to Selphie's house and talk about the other fish in the sea."

Sora did his best to cheer up the evidently disheartened Viking. Unfortunately, that melancholy quickly switched to anger. Barry frowned and accused, "Hold it…you're a vampire. That means you're probably working with the witch! I knew it – ye' want to lure me back to her lair, don't you?"

Shocked by Barry's sudden change of attitude, Sora stammered, "W-what? No!"

"Off with yer head!" Barry raised his axe.

_Shoot,_ Sora cursed in his head, watching the giant battle-axe quickly descend over him. Luckily, Sora's reflexes were on point that night, so it was quick work for him to sidestep Barry's vertical strike and then "matrix" a horizontal slash. In mid-dodge, Sora couldn't help but feel like a slippery beast while the axe passed over his nose. Taking advantage of Barry's choice to use an extremely heavy weapon, Sora summoned his Keyblade and whacked the Viking right in the back of the head, opting to strike before Barry gathered enough strength to swing again.

Barry fell to the ground in a heap, unconscious. Apparently, his Viking helmet was less authentic than his battle-axe.

Surging with adrenaline, Sora apologized, "Sorry, Barry. You didn't really leave me a choice, trying to kill me and all." Suddenly doing a double take at his Keyblade, Sora noticed something new in his weapon's design. It looked just like the Kingdom Key, except the blade was blood red and the hilt was ashen black. And in lieu of the king's insignia, the keychain resembled a cute little bat.

After thoroughly inspecting his weapon, Sora concluded that the mysterious man's magic had definitely caused a few changes in him. But what was still bugging him was why he had remained in his right mind, unlike his fellow classmates. If their transformations initiated a change of persona, why hasn't Sora started yearning for another person's blood? Or acting like a suicidal, whiny teenager, at the very, _very_ least?

"Somebody help me! Please!"

Sora knew that voice all too well. Suddenly sprinting down the dirt path, Sora quickly deduced that the cry had come from Destiny High School by the way its sound waves reverberated off of brick walls. The high school was the only building on Destiny Islands to accommodate brick walls, ergo the cry for help originated near the high school.

However, two things about this discovery instantly struck Sora's curiosity. First, how the heck could he hear something from that far away? The school was at least a mile and a half down the dirt road, so there was no way in Hades he should've been able to hear that at all.

The second thing on Sora's mind was a little more worrisome than the first. If that certain someone was in trouble all the way down by the high school, who knows how deep into the island the other monsters had ventured. Just the thought of entering a wild goose chase around all of Destiny Island made Sora's nerves itch. If that was the worst case scenario (which it probably wasn't), then avoiding any contact with law enforcement was going to be that much more challenging.

Shaking away those thoughts from his head, Sora picked up his already animalistic speed and exclaimed, "Can't think about that stuff! Gotta save Kairi!"

However, a minor distraction caused Sora to skid to a halt. He had stopped near a garbage can, where the rank smell of rotting tuna originated. Peering into the trashcan, Sora sure enough spotted a half-eaten tuna fish the size of his head. His belly rumbled, begging him to do the unthinkable.

Running his fingers through his hair, Sora asked, "Who would throw out a perfectly good tuna?"

Seconds later, Sora was contently licking his gloved fingers, hardly ashamed of himself. Strangely, though, his hunger went unfulfilled, judging by how his tummy growled at him once again. Shrugging it off, Sora ignored his hunger and resumed his race to the high school.

Dashing like a dark blur past more trashcans, fences, and bushes, Sora arrived at the eerie sight of his vacant high school. Scanning the area, Sora zeroed in on two figures slowly approaching a petrified girl. She was trapped between the gymnasium's brick wall and her two assaulters, unable to do anything but cower and wait for her demise.

Remarkably, Sora was just noticing how awesome his night vision had become. From his remote location by the school's front end, he could see exactly who it was that was stuck between a rock and hard place. Confirming his previous suspicions, the cleaver-wielding clown and horrid sea monster were both currently closing in on a defenseless Kairi. Sora needed to do something quickly.

Springing into action, Sora yelled before taking off at a dead sprint, "Hold on, I'm coming!"

However, at about the halfway point, Sora soon found out that his help may not have been quite necessary after all. Right when the clown had raised his cleaver to dish out a slasher-movie-worthy kill, Kairi suddenly spun around in place and whacked both attackers with her ostensibly rigid pair of batwings, sending them flying across campus.

"Whoa!" Sora shrieked, ducking down to avoid the thwarted sea monster. He cautiously neared Kairi, certainly not wishing to incur whatever kind of psycho-fairy-wrath she possessed.

Kairi must've just detected Sora's presence, for she commented in a rather silky tone, "Well, look who decided to show up…"

From what Sora briefly observed, Kairi's wings had temporarily grown in size and shape right before smacking the two creeps away. Seeing this phenomenon led Sora to conclude, "I guess you got changed too, then." That's when Sora noticed something…maybe a little different about the girl's appearance. For one thing, it seemed Kairi's red and black striped dress had shrunken down in certain areas…or perhaps she'd undergone some kind of bodily expansion. Whatever it was, that dress was cutting dangerously low in the neck. After taking a probably too-lengthy look at Kairi's new attributes, the vampire boy stammered, "Uh…dumb statement."

Oblivious to Sora's odd behavior, Kairi asked smoothly, "Did you come all the way down here to rescue me, Sora?"

Sora's ears practically melted at the sound of her saying his name in such an enticing way. And the way she gazed at him, lips barely ajar…he could feel his knees buckling.

_Snap out of it!_ Sora silently commanded himself. _What the heck's up with me? Why am I so…?_

"Hard to imagine that I can take care of myself, isn't it?" Kairi suddenly piped up, also unwittingly finishing Sora's mental sentence.

Blinking a few times, the flustered vamp asked, "Huh? What are you talking about?"

"I no longer need you to rescue me, Sora."

Cripes, she said it again. If she kept at it, Sora's outfit was sure to undergo a little shrinkage of its own. Smacking his cheeks between both palms, Sora stated, "Look, let's just get you back to Selphie's place. You're acting super weird right now, and it's making me feel all kinds of…jumbled-up."

"You don't get it," Kairi retorted, frowning and placing her hands along her hips. "I'm not a Mary Sue that constantly needs your supervision. I can protect myself, now."

"But Kairi, I just heard you crying for help," Sora pointed out. Eyes narrowing, he realized, "Unless that was an act."

"Fair to say that these mean boys enjoy ganging up on a damsel," Kairi commented with a wink. "I just love giving boys what they want."

"Don't talk like that!" Sora shrieked. Attempting to regain his composure, he suggested more calmly, "Here, take my hand. You and I can go find Riku and rescue the others, if you want."

"Hmph."

Kairi began approaching Sora's outstretched hand, sauntering with the stride of a duchess. Now that she was much closer in view, Sora's eyes fully graced her curves – including (but not limited to) her swaying hips, unblemished thighs, and almighty…erm, distractors. All in all, Sora admired her proportionate figure.

In fact, he found himself immobilized by her beauty. Sora had always esteemed Kairi as an attractive young lady, but something different about her mesmerized him. It wasn't really her feminine proportions that muddled his clear thinking; it was the way she strode, spoke, and gazed at him that tantalized his pituitary gland the most. Practically stuck on stupid, Sora was barely aware that she'd had just taken ahold of his gloved hand. Now that he thought about it, he wasn't even entirely sure of what Kairi's Halloween costume was supposed to represent.

Feeling a little anxious, Sora inquired, "Kairi…what exactly is your costume, anyway?"

The answer Sora received was not quite the one he expected. In fact, being thrown through the gymnasium's brick wall is hardly classified as an answer to any question, really.

With a loud crash, Sora's body tumbled like a ragdoll across the indoor basketball court. Sprawled out among broken bricks, Sora rubbed his noggin tenderly. The young vampire was no stranger to pain, as his previous adventures in Heartless-filled worlds could vouch for that. Being tossed through a brick wall, however, was a bit new to him. Strangely enough, though, Sora didn't even feel he'd suffered any broken bones. In fact, with a small amount of wincing, Sora was right back on his feet.

Looking down at his hands in bewilderment, Sora pondered out loud, "Maybe vampires have harder bones, or something…"

Meanwhile, Kairi was levitating through the sizable hole in the gym's wall, arms crossed with an unreadable expression. The school gym's interior was mostly dark, save for a lone ceiling-mounted light that forever remained activated. The rest of the interior sported all the trappings of any typical high school gym, complete with basketball hoops, folded-in bleachers, a scoreboard, and a wrestling mat. Echoing off the dimly lit gymnasium's wooden floors, Kairi's voice resounded, "Succubus."

"Suck-you-what?" Sora tried repeating.

"I came dressed as a succubus, you numskull." Since all she received was a blank stare, Kairi went on impatiently, "I'm a she-demon, Sora. Though I'm not quite sure what a succubus does, I do know that they're supposed to be irresistible to human men. You might think that doesn't apply to you since you're a vampire, but I'm sure we both know I've already achieved the intended effect. Or haven't I?"

Kairi offered another signature wink, of which this time Sora was prepared for. Looking down at her fuzzy boots, Sora unfalteringly responded, "That doesn't matter. You need to snap out of it! I…I know we've usually thrown you in the backseat when it comes to saving the worlds and stuff, but I'm asking you right now to help me round up everyone who escaped the party. Come on, Kairi, just you and me!"

Tightening her fists, Kairi snapped, "It's too late for that! I'll show you I can bring back everyone by myself, and I'm going to start with incapacitating you, Sora."

She said it again, but this time, Sora detected determination in her voice in place of seductiveness. Once again that night, he felt left with no other choice but to engage. Tired of talking, Sora summoned his black and red Kingdom Key and beckoned, "We'll do it your way, then. Come and get me!"

Reshaping her wings into a pair of rocket thrusters, Kairi air-dashed toward the battle-ready boy and dished out a kick meant for Sora's head. Diving away, Sora rebounded and yelled, _"Force!" _A large, purple Gravity ball materialized overtop the unsuspecting princess, descending upon her and magically disabling her flight.

With a yelp, Kairi landed on her bottom, disoriented for a second too long. Sora had run up with what appeared to be a killing intent, practically tackling Kairi and using the length of his Kingdom Key to pin her shoulders to the ground. Pressing his weight down over her, Sora decided he had the upper hand, pleading, "Just give it up, Kairi!"

However, one look at the girl's pained and frightened facial expression quickly changed his attitude. He couldn't avoid feeling extremely guilty for causing her any amount of hurt. Relinquishing the pressure a bit, Sora faltered, "Um…you okay?"

Abruptly changing her look from scared to resentful, Kairi replied before throwing both boots into Sora's abdomen, "Peachy!"

The unexpected force blasted Sora all the way up into the ceiling, where he ricocheted back to the gym's floor a moment later. Kairi, on the other hand, had flown over to where racks of blitzballs were being stored. Morphing both of her wings into two whip-like appendages, Kairi used them to grapple onto a couple of racks and fling them at Sora.

With barely enough time to react, Sora rolled out of the way of the first incoming shelf, narrowly missing every falling blitzball that came with it. Springing to his feet, Sora eyed the second blitzball rack soaring across the gymnasium. This time, he acrobatically leapt onto the rack in midair, seamlessly stealing one of the blitzballs and jumping away. While still in midair, Sora smacked his newly acquired blitzball with the Kingdom Key in a manner not unlike a batter hitting a homerun.

_THWACK!_ The blitzball sailed straight into Kairi's face, knocking her back down on the floor with a couple more thuds. Meanwhile, Sora enjoyed a nimble landing, twirling his Keyblade and cockily saying, "You know, I thought you'd be a lot better than this, considering you have a Keyblade, too."

"Hm…?" Kairi chimed, something barely registering in her brain. Gasping, she flicked her wrist and instantly summoned Destiny's Embrace, a devious smirk spreading amid her facial features. "Thanks for the reminder, smart one."

Shrugging indifferently, Sora smiled and said, "No problem. Figured you could use it."

Flourishing Destiny's Embrace, Kairi assured, "Trust me. You're gonna regret jogging my memory."

Sora slung his dark Kingdom Key over his shoulder, still showing he hadn't a care in the world. "Then let's see what ya got."

Using her shape-shifting wings, Kairi rocket-propelled herself to Sora's position, doling out wild swings of her Keyblade. Sora parried every single strike, backtracking as the ill-tempered succubus levitated after him. Sora found it difficult to predict her aberrant swings, defensively repositioning himself every two seconds. And just when Sora believed he was gaining some momentum in their Keyblade skirmish, Kairi began using her wings to fight as well; more descriptively, she forged her wings into a dozen different whips, lashing out at Sora's limbs and grappling onto them.

"Got you, now!" Kairi rejoiced, wrapping one of the whips around Sora's neck. Floating in the air with her wings holding Sora hostage in front of her, Kairi readied her Keyblade for an exceptionally torturous combo.

With those whips restricting all movement, Sora could only utter a choked groan as he received a harsh flurry of Keyblade strikes to the torso. Hardly withstanding the onslaught, Sora let himself get thrown back onto the wooden floor. Lying in pure agony, Sora wincingly grinned and admitted, "Huh. Guess she was right…"

Kairi had switched gears and gone back to being a suave temptress. Lightly touching down next to Sora's spread-eagled, twitching frame, she cooed, "Get up, you lazy bum."

"Give me a break, Kairi," Sora sluggishly replied.

"Fine, I'll come down then."

Next thing Sora knew, Kairi had taken the liberty of seating herself on the belly-up boy, slightly causing him more pain and ramping up that confusing type of discomfort. She had seated herself in a manner that prevented Sora from seeing below his belt buckle, keeping her knees glued to the ground by his upper ribs.

"Looks like I beat you, Sora."

Sora's adrenaline was going insane at the moment. Eyes blurring in and out, Sora felt his head spin from a mix of pleasure and pain, culminating in an intense craving for…something. Was it more food that he craved? He knew that tuna fish hadn't cured his hunger…

Kairi continued chatting with the tweaking vampire, "I told you I could take care of everything. Even you."

Sora's face started twitching something fierce. Eyes crossing in random directions, Sora moaned, _"Uh…"_

"Don't start without me." Peering down closer to Sora's comically twitching face, Kairi feigned concern as she asked, "You don't look so good. Did I beat you too har…?"

Unfortunately, Kairi was unable to finish her innuendo on account of Sora suddenly sinking his teeth into her neck, siphoning blood like mad a parasite.

* * *

**-X-**

_Happy Halloween, everyone! Obviously, there will be more chapters coming because this would be a pretty crappy place to leave it. If you like it or hate it so far, dash away any fears of inadequacy and tell me! Nonetheless, I'll keep updating in the coming days._

_Hybrid out!_


End file.
